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R.O.C.K. Research: The Effects of Hippotherapy on Respiratory Capacity
Shannon Middleton, MA, CCC-SLP, Speech Language Pathologist, AHA Level II Therapist, NARHA Registered Therapist, and NARHA Registered Instructor
Sam W. demonstrates his respiratory capacity for Shannon M.
The Hippotherapy Department has been hard at work researching the many benefits of using the horse’s movement in therapy sessions at R.O.C.K. In Speech Therapy, we have been documenting the changes in participants’ respiratory capacity as they participate in Speech Therapy sessions using hippotherapy as a treatment strategy.
Because the horse provides a dynamic base of support, it is an excellent tool for increasing trunk strength and control, and for building overall postural strength and endurance (American Hippotherapy Association). Maintaining enough breath support to produce speech is dependent on proper positioning and adequate trunk strength and control. The position of the body also influences how much air is in the lungs. As lung volume and vital capacity increase, an individual’s voice volume and words produced per breath also increase. We hypothesized that the use of hippotherapy in therapy sessions would increase our participants’ respiratory capacity and breath support which are needed for functional speech output.
Our participants included 12 children who received Speech Therapy using hippotherapy as a treatment strategy once a week for 24 weeks. An incentive spirometer was used to measure their respiratory effort in their exhalations. Each participant was encouraged to blow into a mouthpiece connected to the spirometer and, with their airflow, try to keep a small ball at the top of the spirometer tube for as long as possible. Each participant started at the same rate of resistance or flow rate. If they were successful for three trials, the flow rate was increased in increments. Once the participant was unable to get the ball to touch the top of the tube, testing was stopped. Measurements were taken in September, December, and March, and will also be taken in June.
After the first 14 weeks of Speech Therapy sessions using hippotherapy, 86% of the participants were able to increase their flow rate while exhaling into the incentive spirometer. There was a 64% increase in the length of time each participant was able to exhale. Following an additional 10 weeks of therapy sessions, 67% of the participants were able to increase their flow rate while exhaling. There was a 75% increase in the length of time each participant was able to exhale into the spirometer. Our preliminary results concluded that Speech Therapy using hippotherapy as a treatment strategy can increase respiratory capacity and breath support which are both needed for speech output.
We had the privilege to present our preliminary results in a poster session to our peers this past March at the American Hippotherapy Association’s International Conference in St. Louis, Missouri. With the interest and feedback we received, we will continue to study how the use of hippotherapy increases respiratory capacity and breath support needed for speech output. We would like to thank all of the children and their families for their participation and support. We will keep you updated on our findings.
